TORONTO – Canada’s ex-Prime Ministers are teaming up with CTV to name Canada’s Next Great Prime Minister.
Four former Prime Ministers – Kim Campbell, Joe Clark, John Turner and Brian Mulroney – will gather on-stage in Toronto next week to elect a potential future leader of the country in a new CTV special. The new show was announced on CTV’s eTalk Daily, the show where Mulroney’s son, Canadian Idol host Ben, works.
The ex-PMs will judge five young visionaries – representing the next generation of Canada’s leaders – competing in a head-to-head political showdown. In addition to a $50,000 prize and internship, the winner walks away with the endorsement of four former Prime Ministers as the young Canadian best suited to become The Next Great Prime Minister.
The hour-long special will be hosted by Canada AM’s Seamus O’Regan and will be taped in front of a live studio audience at Toronto’s John Bassett Theatre on Monday, January 30, 2006 and will be broadcast on CTV on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 8 p.m.
The Next Great Prime Minister is based on a nationwide challenge originated by Frank Stronach’s Magna corporation in 1995. It’s the first time the competition has culminated in a televised special – and it’s also the first time that former Prime Ministers have been asked to choose the winner. Clark (1979-80), Turner (1984), Mulroney (1984-93) and Campbell (1993) will act as a four-member judging panel, appearing on stage in the special as five finalists participate in challenges to determine The Next Great Prime Minister.
The winner of the competition will receive $50,000 and The Dominion Institute Magna Kroeger (DMK) Fair Enterprise and Public Policy Award. The award includes a six-month paid internship split between The Dominion Institute, Magna and the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs. The remaining finalists will each receive $10,000 and a three-month paid internship also split between the three employment sectors.
